1. Login.

2. Mouse over the person icon.

At the top right of the page, mouse over the person icon. If you’re logged in, the person icon will have a blue circle that says “on” next to it.

3. Click on 교보e캐시.

With your mouse hovering over the person icon, a menu will pop up. Click on 교보e캐시. It should be near the very top of the pop-up menu.

The screen should show your current ecash levels. Right now, I have only 400 won (about 40 cents) because I recently purchased two books.

4. Click on 충전.

See that button that says 충전 on the far left in bold under the logo for 교보e캐시? Click on this. It will take you to the page to charge money to your account.

Depending on how much money you add to your account, you can receive a bonus amount of ecash. For example, when I took the screenshot below, paying 20,000 won would get me 21,000 won worth of ecash.

I recommend looking for the ebooks that you’re interested in before you add ecash to your account. Check their prices! Then charge roughly that amount to your account. It’s annoying to go to purchase an ebook and then realize you’re only a few thousand won short.

This box on the side of your screen tells you a few details about your selection.

나의 현재 교보e캐시 — my current Kyobo Ecash

충전 결제 금액 — how much I’ve chosen to add

추가 적립 금액 — bonus amount added

충전 후 총 교보e캐시 — total Kyobo Ecash amount after charging

Be sure to click the checkbox between the gray box and the blue button, which says 위 내용을 확인하였으며 결제에 대해 동의합니다. This ensures that you are aware of the details above — the total amount you’re paying and the bonus amount that you will receive as a result.

Additionally, charging via PayPal doesn’t allow for any refunds, so you automatically agree to this condition by checking the box and proceeding.

5. Select your payment option (PayPal).

Now that you’ve selected how much you want to add, it’s time to pay for it! Scroll down to 결제수단 선택, which should be right below.

As a foreigner currently living outside Korea, I’ve only used PayPal. Select the PayPal option in the second line for 해외결제 or choose the 해외발행 신용카드 if you have a foreign bank debit card that is accepted in Korea. I recommend PayPal, as it is much easier to complete the payment.

6. Login to PayPal in the new window that opens automatically.

The previous step will open a new window with a PayPal login screen. Log into PayPal.

But wait — what if nothing happens? You’ve clicked but it doesn’t work? Make sure your ad blocker didn’t prevent any popup windows and try again.

7. Follow the directions in the new PayPal window to pay for your ecash.

Remember — no refunds. Double check everything.

Similarly, remember that your home currency and the Korean won may have a different exchange rate. Check the PayPal window at the top; it probably will tell you how much will actually be charged to you. At the time of writing this post, it is telling me I’ll pay $4.66 for 5,000 won worth of ecash.

8. Click pay in the PayPal window!

Once you hit the pay button, the window will refresh and display the box above. Congratulations! You’ve charged your account with Kyobo ecash! Click OK and the window will close itself.

Your original Kyobo window will display this as a receipt:

Now it’s time to go buy your first Korean ebook. Are you as excited as I am?!

I have so many book recs, but I’ll leave you with two of my personal favs for now: 언어의 온도 by 이기주 (essays on the “temperature” of language) and 조선왕조실록 by 설민석 (the best and easiest to understand overview of Joseon kings of all time).

Did you find this guide helpful? Let me know in the comments and share this with your friends. I’m all about the world reading more — and I’m all about Korean learners accessing Korean-language reading materials easily and legally.

I’m also trying to buy some Korean ebook, but the one I aim for is not on Kyobo, but Ridibook. It’s a very famous novel from 2009 named “Walk on water” by 장목단. But due to it’s story about sex industry, it’s marked as 19+. My problem is, I don’t know how to complete the Adult verification they require. And I don’t even know if they accept Paypal or international payment cards.

If possible, could you please try that site and give me some clue? I’m sorry for asking out of no where, but I really want to get my hands on this novel. Thank you in advance 🙂

I’ve only used Ridibooks for accessing some of their free ebooks a long time in the past, but I never purchased anything from them. I do see that they have a foreign credit card option for “charging Ridi-cash” once you login to your account with them. I haven’t tried it myself, but it’s worth checking out. Here’s what I can share with you based on my initial foray into their payment page:

1. Login to the website if you have an account.

2. Hover over “마이리디” at the top. Select the “리디캐시” option.

3. Select “리디 충전” next. Should be under the main header, first from the left.

4. Select how much money you want to add to your account.

5. Under “결제 수단,” choose “다른 결체 수단.” This will reveal a drop down menu.

6. Select “해외 발행 신용카드.”

7. Check the box at the very bottom to confirm you have checked all of your selections and are ready to proceed with making a purchase. “상품, 가격, 할인 정보, 유의 사항 등을 확인하였으며 구매에 동의합니다.”

8. Click the blue button, “리디캐시 충전.”

9. This takes you to a payment page where it asked for your credit card number.

I haven’t personally purchased or charged money with Ridibooks, so I can’t say what happens after you input your credit card number, but I presume it should allow you to use international payment cards (as that is what the selection page calls it).

Additionally, for adult verification, I’ve honestly never encountered that request. What I did do with another Korean site when I couldn’t access all of the features (due to not having an alien registration card or Korean citizenship number) was contact them directly. Use the 1:1 문의 option found on most Korean websites. I believe this is Ridibooks: https://help.ridibooks.com/hc/ko/requests/new?ticket_form_id=580827 Explain your need for verification there, and they should give you directions on how to complete the necessary verification.

In the past, I uploaded my US driver’s license for another website. It was a very safe and legitimate site, but do be careful and considerate before sharing any personal information.

As far as I know, e-cash only works for ebooks (I haven’t tried to use it for hardcopies of any kind). That being said, if you’re looking to buy physical books, there are several options you can look into. Shipping is usually exorbitantly expensive, so if you can bundle all your items with a friend or buy a lot at one time, you may save on shipping. I’d check out the TTMIK Store, GMarket Global (other booksellers often sell through them), and Two Chois to compare prices.

For example, I bought a set of TOPIK textbooks several years ago. They cost about $30 (USD) but I paid nearly $50 (USD) in shipping.

While I know Kyobo ships internationally, I’ve heard that not all items for sale are available to be shipped, so I’d double-check everything before putting in e-cash if you’re not also interested in ebooks as a backup option.